Hammers Over the Anvil

It's an exceptionally well done film with a great storyline, beautiful photography and brilliant acting by the main characters, Russell Crowe (as East), Alexander Outhred (as Alan) and Charlotte Rampling (as Grace). It is one of those movies which I like better each time I watch them. I bought the movie on DVD for my Russell Crowe collection and watched it on five evenings in a row. Each time I discovered more subtle details, more subtle facial expressions. It is a drama and has a very sad ending but there are still so many pleasant and even humorous scenes in this film that make watching it so enjoyable. My score is 10 out of 10.

Alexander Outhred stars as a crippled boy in the Australian coming-of-age story Hammers Over the Anvil. He longs to have a normal adolescence, but girls don't pay much attention to him and he has trouble just walking around the countryside, let alone riding a horse like a pro. Naturally, he looks up to the incredibly rugged and capable Russell Crowe, a master horseman with confidence and every woman at his fingertips. To top it all off, Russell is kind to the boy. He appears to have no flaws, but as is the case in every coming-of-age story, the pedestal is bound to topple.

Usually in this genre, there's a bit of a harmless romance; for example, the young kid gets a crush on an adult and she breaks his heart by falling for his idol. I was surprised by the strong sexual content in this movie. If I had a teenaged or pre-teen son, I would be embarrassed to watch it with him. Movies generally warn you as to what you're getting yourself into, though, and the opening scene of Hammers Over the Anvil features a completely naked Russell Crowe frolicking in the water with a group of horses. I wouldn't dream of complaining, but it's just unusual for pre-teen stories to feature graphic sex scenes in them. Charlotte Rampling was drawn to the "beautiful" script, but perhaps she was just envisioning her bedroom scene with her hunky, younger costar. There's nothing "beautiful" about the story. In fact, it takes a very dark turn and becomes quite upsetting. If you want to see a cute, young, Crowe, check out For the Moment instead.

Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to sexual content, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.

I wonder if "Hammers Over the Anvil" author Alan Marshall could conceive there would one day be a film version of his book that opened with a grinning pubescent version of himself watching a grown man with a Peter Pan complex frolic naked in the water with horses, intermittently straddling and splaying himself across their backs. On the other hand, it gives hope to actresses like Traci Lords that they might one day go on to achieve success in legitimate films, like Russell Crowe, despite this naked exposure, has done.

Seriously, I chose to rent this video because of Crowe's inclusion in the cast, and knew ahead of time there was some nudity, but jeesh! The opening scene was tame compared to the rest of the film. Have these Aussies not heard that less is more? How about some subtle lighting and shadow play? I may as well have been standing in a barnyard watching a bunch of rutting farm animals have at it. The grunting and groaning alone sufficed; the viewer didn't need to be hit over the head with the visuals.

The secondary plot of young Alan trying to overcome the challenge of his polio inflicted legs so he could one day mount a horse was lost. Instead, the muck masquerading as an adolescent's "coming of age" became the focus of this movie. A shame for a work by a classic author like Marshall.

Firstly, and no, I am not a fanatic, a vegan or a rampant nut job, but if I ever have to watch another film where the incredible animal abuse of horses being ridden HORENDOUSLY, their mouths being torn with bits, riders who simply don't know how, the whole bucking bronco scene and the fear and hatred displayed in horse's eyes, I will scream louder than my rant.

This garbage is apparently taken from and Alan Marshall book and he became quite famous.

The movie is a stupid, stupid and did I mention stupid rendition of the gross matter of dumb bush people and someone's boring sex laden affair.

Nothing I cared about other than the animals abused for this tripe.

Beautiful, passionate rites of passage film. Ann Turner, the director, chose her actors well. Charlotte Rampling's cool femininity and Russell Crowe's intense masculinity created a special chemistry on screen. Ann Turner had some very delicate scenes to direct and used an subtle and artful touch. The opening scene was glorious and a joy to see an actor (or anyone) so comfortable in their own skin.

The young boy who played Alan Marshall (Alexander Outhred) was absolutely wonderful. There was a magical, childlike wonder and innocence about the love scene between East & Grace that Alan witnesses and another reason why this film is so good. I don't want to spoil this for anyone who is able to see it... I'll just say this could become one of my favorite films. It's possible that this will be released on VHS soon.